Cigar feeding device



4 Sheets-Sheet l E. F. CORNOCK CIGAR FEEDING DEVICE Filed Dec. 5, 1951July 3, 1934.

July 3, 1934. E. F. CORNOCK CIGAR FEEDING DEVICE Filed Deo. 5, 1931 4Sheets-Sheet 2 3 INVEN TOR. fuwA/w Fe/voel( A WORM/ July 3, 1934. El F.CORNOCK 1,965,306

CIGAR FEEDING DEVICE Filed Dec. 5, 1931 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 z/ 6 l f s ENTOR. Y "fnv/1R17 Ffm/ack 42 /0 f M 2g ATTORNEYS.

July 3, 1934. E. F. coRNocK Y 1,965,306

CIGAR FEEDING DEVICE Filed Dec. 5, 1951 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 5l ff /7 AJNVENTOR.

C), 50W/1R12 EMPA/@cx Patented July 3, 1934 .unirse srArEs CIGAR FEEDINGDEVICE Edward F. Cornock, Springileld, Mass., assignor to PackageMachinery Company, Springfield Mass., a corporation of MassachusettsApplication December 5,

somma.

This invention relates to improvements in article feeding mechanism ofthe type shown in the Grover application Serial No. 451,688, iiled May12, 1930, and in the Smith application Serial 'No. 452,682, iiled May18, 1930. In the mechanism shown in these applications a row of cigarswas pushed laterally from a magazine .upon vertically movable tablemembers which, upon their descent, deposited a row of cigars upon a pairof continuously moving chains, the pusher operating mechanism'being sotimed that as soon as the last cigar of the deposited row had beenadvanced clear of the plate by the chains, the plate wasv again raisedand the feeding cycle repeated. With this prior structure it wasnecessary to make substantial changes and substitutions of parts inorder vto change the number ci' cigars in the group fed by the pusherfrom the magazine.

It is the principal object of the present inven-z tion to providefeeding mechanism of the above type which will, without other manualadjust ment than the proper positioning of the walls of thehopper,automatically accommodate a substantial range in the number and/or sizeof cigars 25 'fed as a group from the hopper.

'In the accompanying drawings which illustrate one embodiment of theinvention:

Fig. 1 is a top plan view of the machine;

Fig. 2 is a side elevation on a larger scale of 30 the delivery end ofthe machine, a portion of the side frame being broken, away;

Fig. 3 is a section on line 3--3 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a section on line 4-4 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 5 is a section online 5-5 of Fig. 4;

Fig. 6 is a section on line 6-6 of Fig. 4;

Figs. 'I and 8 are detail views showing the corresponding rest positionsof the pusher drive and its control finger; and

Figs. 9 and 10 are views similar respectively to 4ov Figs. 7 and 8 butshowing the members in opera` tive position.

Referring to the drawings, the machine is supported upon a frame 10 towhich a magazine supporting bracket 11 (Fig. 4) is secured. A plate 1245 carried upon this bracket forms the bottom of a cigar magazine, theends of which are formed by uprights 13, 14, 15 and 16.

' As best shown in Fig. 1, uprights 15 and 16 are carried by a plate 17adjustably secured to plate 50 12 as at 18 to permit adjustment of thelength of the magazine to vary the number of cigars in the row deliveredfrom the magazine or to accommodate cigars of greater or less thickness.The uprights 13 and 14 are mounted directly on plate 12. 55 Preferablyuprights 14 and 16 are adjustably se- 1931, Serial No. 579,139

cured as at to their respective supporting plates to permit adjustmentof thefmagazine to accommodate cigars of different length. The frontplate 21 of the magazine is held, at an adjustable elevation,.to upright13 by a screw and slot connection 22 (Fig. 6) and to upright 15 by aclamping screw 23 (Fig. 4). The rear plate 24 of the magazine isremovably secured to upright 14 by screw 25 (Fig. 1) and to upright 16by a clamping screw 26. As will be obvious, clamping screws 23 and 26permit movement of the uprights 15 and 16 along the front and rearplates in adjusting the length of the magazine. Therear plate 24 may beremoved so that the cigars can be placed Within the magazine in orderlyrows, and to further facilitate the lloading of the magazine a rearbracket 27 (Fig. 4) is secured to bracket 11 and carries on its top aloading table 28 adjustably secured to the bracket 27 as at 29 (Fig. 1).

To force the bottom layer of cigars through the space between plate 12and the bottom of the front plate 21, a reciprocating plunger isprovided. Upon supports 30 extending from the bracket 11 are ways 31(Fig. 5) in which rack slides 32 run carrying a pusher carriage 33. Apusher plate 34 provided with a head 35 is secured to this carriage. Toreciprocate the carriage in the ways, the rack slides 32 are providedwith teeth 36 (Fig. 4) meshing with pinions 37 (Figs. 1 and 5) fast uponashaft 38 which is journaled in bearings 39. A pinion 40 (Figs. 4 and 5)upon this shaft meshes with a rack 41 held in position by a guide 42 andpivoted at 43 to the end of a crank member 44 swung at 45 from theframe. The crank is formed with a slideway 46 in which reciprocates ablock 47 pivotally mounted upon a disk 48 secured to a shaft 49.

As the cigars are fed from the magazine by the plunger they areprevented from over-travel by an abutment 50 formed on the frame and arekept in proper alignment by a guide 51 secured to upright 15. In thisposition, the cigars are received upon table members 52 carried uponbrackets 53 (Fig. 6) pivotally mounted at 54 to similar arms of a. pairof identical bell cranks 55 mounted on rock shafts 56. The other arms ofthese bell cranks are joined by a link 57 so that they move in unisonand provide a parallel motion for the table members 52. One of theshafts 56 has fixed to it an armV 58 (Fig. 1) provided at its end with aroll contacting with a crown cam 59 secured to shaft 49. The tablemembers are thus caused to move in timed relation with the plunger whichforces the layer 0r row of cigars from the magazine, and the cam 59 isso designed that the table members will remain in their elevatedposition during the entire outward movement of the plunger and will thendescend to deposit the cigars upon the chain conveyor 60.

Conveyor 60 and cooperating upper chain 61, together with theiroperating mechanism and associated parts, are fully described in theSmith application Serial No. 452,682 above referred to; and since theirspecific structure is not part of the present invention a detaileddescription thereof is not necessary. It will be sufficient to note thatthe successive rows of cigars are advanced by the continuously movingconveying mechanism to a vertical plunger 62 which moves the cigarssuccessively into the wrapping machine proper, means generally indicatedat 63 being provided to interrupt the operation of plunger 62 if thecontinuity of the file of cigars is broken.

Upon the descent of the table members to deposit the cigars carriedthereby upon `the chains, the feeding mechanism including the tablemembers must rest inactive until the cigars have all cleared the tablemembers. In order that the inactive period of the feeding mechanism maybe automatically timed to permit the feed of cigars from the magazine ingroups of various numbers, the shaft 49 is driven through mechanismcontrolled directly by the group of cigars fed in accordance with thenumber and size of the cigars in the group. Shaft 49 is provided witha-gear 65 mounted for free rotation on the shaft. Gear 65 iscontinuously driven by a gear 66 mounted on a shaft 6'7 suitably drivenfrom the associated wrapping machine as by gears 68-69 and sprocket '70(Fig. 3). A cam '71 and a ratchet '72 are secured to gear 65, and shaft49 is adapted to be coupled to gear 65 to be driven thereby throughengagement of ratchet '72 by a pawl 73 pivoted at 74 to an arm '75secured to shaft 49. A spring '76 connects the pawl to the hub of arm 75and urges the pawl into engagement with the ratchet. P'awl '73 isprovided with a catch '77 engageable with a latch '78 which is pivotedto the frame at '79 and is adapted to hold pawl '73 out of engagementwith the ratchet '72. Latch '78 is connected by a link to one arm of abell crank 81 (Fig. 2), the other arm of which is connected by a link 82to an arm 83 adjustably secured to a rock shaft 84 carrying ngers 85positioned in the path of the cigars fed forward by conveyor 60 from thetable members 52. As best shown in Fig. 8, the fingers 85 are rockedclockwise, against the action of a weight 86 (Fig. 2) secured to thebell crank, by contact with the cigars passing forward on the conveyor,to the position shown in full line in Fig. 8 and in dotted line in Fig.10. In this position, link 80 is elevated as shown in Fig. '7 to depresslatch 78 into position for engagement with catch 7'7 as shown in Fig.'7. Pawl '73 is provided with a roll 8'7 riding on cam 71 which is soshaped as to periodically rock the catch rearwardly out of engagementwith the latch (as shown in Fig. 9), but as long as the latch remains inthe dotted line position of that figure the catch is reengaged with thelatch as soon as released by the cam.

When the last cigar of a group fed from the table members passes frombeneath the fingers 85 (as shown in Fig. 10), the fingers swing from thedotted line position of that figure to the position shown in full lines,a stop 88 (Fig. 8) preventing over-travel of the fingers and associatedparts. This movement of ngers 85 through the linkage just describedraises latch '78 as soon as the catch is disengaged therefrom by theretraction of the latter by cam 71, and

permits pawl 73 to engage ratchet '72. With the pawl in engagement withthe ratchet, shaft 49 is locked to gear 65 and is driven thereby causingthe feeding mechanism to operate to discharge a group of cigars from themagazine and deposit them onethe conveyor. As the so deposited group isadvanced by the conveyor, the leading cigar again elevates fingers 85,thus lowering latch '78 into position to engage catch '77 and disengagepawl '73 from ratchet '72, thus disconnecting shaft 49 from gear 65 andarresting the rotation of shaft 49. The feeding cycle if completed inone revolution of the shaft 49, and arm '75 is so positioned on theshaft in relation to block 4'7 and ca m '59 that the feeding cycle ishalted at a point when the table lmembers are in their lowered position.

Since the cigars are fed in units, or one at a time, by thereciprocating plunger 62, the cigars accumulate at the forward end ofthe conveyor, the chains slipping on the cigars as they are halted bythe plunger, and the advancing groups of cigars therefore catch up withthe depleted accumulation at the forward end of the conveyor thusproviding a continuous supply to the plunger.

It is desirable to keep a file of articles extending from the plunger 62back between the continuous conveyor chains 60 and 61 for a distancewhich is never allowed to fall below a predetermined minimum, in orderthat there will always be sufficient pressure on the leading cigar toseat it fully beneath the plunger. The chains 60 and 61 do not extend tothe plunger, the file of cigars between the chains and the plunger beingforcedonward by the chain-gripped cigars behind them. The action of thechains on the cigars being frictional on1y, it is necessary to haveseveral cigars in simultaneous engagement with the chains in order toforce the ungripped file of cigars positively forward. The mechanism 63previously referred to is adapted to control this condition, and tocooperate with the control finger 85 to preserve a file of at leastminimum length back of the plunger 62 even when the number of cigars fedper cycle by the plunger 35 is insufficient to keep up an unbroken filebeyond the finger 85.

The control mechanism 63 is constructed as follows. The plunger 62 ismounted for vertical reciprocation in a guide 100 hung from a freelyswinging link 101. An arm 102 pivoted to the plunger is fixed upon ashaft 103 to which is also secured an operating arm 104. A roller on theend of this latter arm is held by a suitable spring against a cam 105 onthe shaft 6'7. A third arm 106 secured to the shaft 103 is adapted forcontact with a detent 107 xed on a shaft 108 which is normally heldrotated further to the right than the position in which it is shown inFig. 2 by contact of the cigars with a feeler plate 109. A spring 110and a stop arm 111 permit the parts to assume the position of Fig. 2when no cigars are under the feeler plate. In this position the detent10'7 underlies the arm 106 and prevents the arm 104 from following thecam. The plunger 62 is by this means held down so that it will not onlyrefrain from feeding cigars but by its lowered position will arrest thefeeding of cigars between the guide plates 112 and 113 until the desirednumber of cigars have formed in line behind it. When cigars again startto move past lll A:lli

the feeler 109, the latter will be raised and the detent 107 swung to aposition out of the way oi.' the arm 106, permitting the plunger 62 toresume its feeding operation.

What I claim is:

1. A feeding device for cigars or similar articles which comprises aconveyor for advancing and accumulating a file of articles, means fordelivering the articles in units from the conveyor to a wrapping or likemechanism, means operative upon actuation to feed and deposit upon theconveyor a group of articles greater in number than the unit of deliveryfrom the conveyor, means responsive to the absence of articles at onepoint on the conveyor to actuate the feeding and depositing means, andmeans responsive to the absence of articles at a subsequent point on theconveyor for arresting the progress of articles along the conveyor topreserve at the delivery end of the conveyor a continuous le of articlesof predetermined minimum length.

2. A feeding device for cigars or similar articles which comprises aconveyor for advancing and accumulating a Iile of articles, means forremoving the articles in units from the delivery end of the conveyor,means responsive to the presence of a predetermined length of le ofarticles for controlling the operation of the removing means, mechanismfor 4depositing articles upon the conveyor in groups of units, and meansresponsive to the absence of articles at a. predetermined point l on theconveyor for controlling the depositing mechanism.

3. A feeding device for cigars or similar articles which comprises aconveyor for advancing and Aaccumulatiny a le of articles, means fordelivering the articles in units from the conveyor to a wrapping or likemechanism, means operative upon actuation to feed and deposit upon theconveyor a group of articles greater in number than the unit of deliveryfrom the conveyor, means for operating said feeding and depositingmechanism including a clutch, a feeler positioned to rest upon thearticles on the conveyor at one point along the length thereof, andmovable in position upon the occurrence of a gap in the lle of articlesbeing advanced, connecting meansv between said feeler and the clutchwhereby said clutch is engaged and actuation of the feeding anddepositing means is caused upon the movement of the feeler due to theoccurrence of such a gap, a second feeler positioned at a subsequentpoint along the length of the conveyor and movable in position upon theoccurrence of a gap in the le of articles at that point, and mechanismcontrolled by said second feeler for arresting progress of articlesalong the conveyor and thuspreserving at the delivery end of thec'onveyor

